BOSTON — After playing through shoulder issues since spring training, Rafael Devers has reached the point of no return.
The Red Sox placed their All-Star slugger on the 10-day injured list with left-shoulder inflammation just after 3 p.m. on Saturday, officially ending his season. Mickey Gasper has been recalled from Triple-A Worcester to fill his roster spot.
Devers’ IL stint was all but inevitable once manager Alex Cora announced that he was likely going to be shut down following Friday night’s extra-innings loss to the Minnesota Twins. Gasper was already in the Red Sox clubhouse when Devers was having an MRI on both shoulders early Saturday afternoon.
“He was on and off, up and down. For a while there, nothing,” the Sox skipper said. “Yesterday, it got worse.”
The right shoulder ailment dates back to spring training, while the left shoulder became a problem when the Red Sox played in Colorado in late July, Cora said. Even so, Devers managed to play 138 games, collect 34 doubles – matching his total in 153 games last season – and 28 home runs, and set new career-highs in triples (5) and walks (67). He was named an All-Star for the third time in four years, but opted not to play in the Midsummer Classic in order to rest his shoulder.
“I think Trevor (Story) said it best: to set an example, you have to play,” Cora said. “And that’s what you do as a big leaguer. You gotta keep grinding, posting. … The guy that really helped him with that was Xander (Bogaerts). Xander, he always found ways to play, right? That’s what he did.”
“I think overall, injuries aside, he was one of the best hitters, if not the best hitter in the big leagues for two and a half months,” Cora said. “It was fun to see.”
In its totality, Devers’ offensive season was stellar. He entered Saturday ranked in the 83rd MLB percentile or better in Batting Run Value, expected wOBA (xwOBA), expected batting average (xBA), expected slugging (xSLG), average exit velocity, barrel rate, hard-hit rate, and walk rate. Though this is his lowest game total since 2018 (not including the shortened 2020 season), he set career-highs in triples (5) and walks (67).
Yet eye test and numbers of his second half tell the story of a player who tried in vain to play through it. In 84 games before the All-Star break, Devers hit .291 with a .965 OPS, 92 hits (18 doubles, four triples, 23 home runs), 62 runs, and 61 RBI. He hit .244 with a .727 OPS after the break, with his slugging percentage falling from .592 to .402. Though he collected 16 doubles in 54 second-half games, he only homered five times.
“He worked on a few things in the offseason, and one of those was to catch up with the fastball, right? And then he got to the point that he didn’t,” Cora explained. “Teams, they noticed it and they attacked. I mean, it was relentless. And that started probably a month and a half ago.”
Red Sox-Twins postponed: Due to unceasing rain and a coastal flood alert for Suffolk County, Saturday’s Red Sox-Twins game was postponed. The American League teams will now wrap up their season series with a split doubleheader on Sunday.
The Red Sox initially announced Saturday’s 4:10 p.m. start would be delayed 10 minutes before the scheduled first pitch. Less than 20 minutes later, they announced the postponement.
To accommodate two games on a getaway day, Sunday’s series finale has been moved up an hour, from 1:35 to 12:35 p.m. and Saturday’s game will be played at 5:35 p.m. Tickets for Saturday’s game are good for admission to the later game.
Nick Pivetta will start the first game, while Kutter Crawford, who was slated to start Saturday, will take the mound for the second.
